Daniel Short achieved 2 bronze medals at the Sara Baartman athletics meeting in Port Elizabeth today. Congratulations Daniel!
Hoër Volkskool hosted the 2019 Interschools Gala at the Hoër Volkskool pool on Tuesday, 12 February. Although we were represented well in all age groups, Union swam against strong competition at this year’s Interschools gala. Our swimmers made Union proud by truly giving their all, many of them competing in every event they could to ensure points for Union. The final score was Union 302 – Volkskool 366.
While the loss is disappointing, we would like to thank the swimmers for their participation and determination, and congratulate them on their good behavior throughout the event. Thank you to Hoër Volkskool for hosting this event in their wonderful facilities; and, of course, to all the staff and pupils who gave up their time to officiate at the event. We look forward to the annual Karoo Interschools Gala held at the Hoër Volkskool pool.
1st XI vs Muir College
On Friday our 1st XI played their last game for the season in a 50 over day night game against Muir College.
This was also a very special occasion as two of our boys received their 50th cap, Trevor Moos and Luke Mc Naughton.
Muir won the toss and elected to bat. Union put on a wonderful display of bowling and fielding with Luke Mc Naughton taking the lead with the ball backed up by some wonderful sharp fielding that lead to a game changing run out. Unio…n managed to keep the runs to a minimum and kept taking wickets at regular intervals and managed to bowl Muir out for 127.
Bowling performances: Luke Mc Naughton 5 for 42 in 10 overs; Brett Amsterdam 2 for 17 in 8 overs; Caerwyn Spence 1 for 10 in 6 overs; Lunga Zantsi 1 for 25 in 3 overs.
Union went in to bat and what ended up being a stop start beginning to the innings made things a bit tough at the start, however Trevor Moos and James Pringle put together the perfect 47 run opening partnership through very trying conditions to put us in a commanding position for the run chase. This allowed Brett Amsterdam, Luke Mc Naughton and Zusakhe Ngwane to bat with freedom and get us over the line with only 3 wickets down.
This was really a clinical performance from Union who were always in control and was wonderful that Luke and Trevor rose to the occasion and put together two wonderful performances in their 50th game.
Batting performances: Brett Amsterdam 37 not out; Trevor Moos 24; Luke Mc Naughton 19; James Pringle 17; Zusakhe Ngwane 9 not out.
Union won the match by 7 wickets
Congratulations to Luke McNaughton and Trevor Moos who both received their 50th cap from Mr Pringle before the day/night game against Muir College today.
1ST XI vs Nico Malan CSA national T20 competition
On Saturday Union 1st XI played against Nico Malan in the CSA National T20 competition at Grey High School.
Nico Malan won the toss and sent Union in to bat. Union got off to a reasonable start but struggled to put together a meaningful partnership and kept losing wickets at regular intervals. This unfortunately lead to us only scoring 103.
Batting performances: Zusakhe Ngwane 16; Brett Amsterdam 14; Jayden Brotherton 13; Bowen Langmead 12; Caerwyn Spence 12.
Nico Malan went in to bat and Union fought hard with the ball and in the field and had Nico Malan 48 for 5. However 103 proved a tough target to defend even though the game ended up going right down to the wire. In the end it was a great game of cricket and very exciting to watch. If Union could have capitalized on one or two chances the result could easily have been different.
Bowling performances: Jayden Brotherton 2 for 14 in 4; Lihle Mxhunyelwa 2 for 19 in 3; Brett Amsterdam 1 for 17 in 3; Trevor Moss 1 for 28 in 3
Even though he did not take a wicket, Caerwyn Spence bowl two excellent overs in the heat of the game which only went for 7 runs.
Union lost he match by 3 wickets
UHS 2nd Cricket vs Muir
UHS won the toss and elected to bat first in this 40 over match. James Pienaar 32, William Kayster 22, Khwezi Simon 16*, Matthew Hesselink 13 and Josh Calitz 10 contributed to a score of 131 all out in the 25th over.
Muir replied with a score of 138/6 in the 28th over. Best bowling figures were Jarrod Naude 2/28 and Matthew Hesselink 2/38.
No significant run partnership, not batting out our overs and a dropped catch put us under pressure in defending the low score posted.
UHS lost this match by 4 wickets.
U/15A vs Muir College
On Saturday our Colts played at Botanics against Muir College in a 40 over match. Muir won the toss and asked us to bat first. Union lost some quick wickets upfront through poor shot selection and a lack of patience. Kwande Mhlabeni and Matthew Basson consolidated for a brilliantly played 70 run partnership. With a lapse in concentration we lost our last 6 wickets for only 39 runs. Union made 139 all out in 31.3 overs.
Top batsmen: Kwande Mhlabeni 42; Matthew Basson 39; Sisipho Arnols 15.
The Union bowlers struggled to bowl a good line and length. As a result failed to put the Muir batsmen under pressure. Missed chances didn’t help us. Muir passed our score in the 31st over having lost only 5 wickets.
Top bowlers: Laython Carelse 3 for 28 in 8 overs; Daniel Nell 1 for 16 in 3 overs; Hlakinipha Skepe 1 for 34 in 7.2 overs.
Union lost the game by 5 wickets.
A group of 16 Union swimmers, from U/13 to Open, participated in the 4th and last B Age Group gala of the season, in Port Elizabeth on Saturday 16th February. Our swimmers did very well, improving on their times and some again achieving awards times. The swimmers are awaiting their invitations to the prestigious Top 8 Gala, which takes place on the 9th of March.
Results:
Mack Rubidge (44 points) 1st place 50m Backstroke
1st place 100m Freestyle
2nd place 50m Butterfly
2nd place 50m Freestyle
Elia Railton (28 points) 1st place 50m Breastroke
2nd place 50m Backstroke
Megan Doyle (18 points) 2nd place 100m Freestyle
3rd place 50m Freestyle
Amber Binney (17 points) 3rd place 50m Breaststroke
After a successful outing at the B-age group gala on Saturday, nine of our more determined swimmers stayed over in PE to take part in the 95th Spar Sunday’s River Mile on Sunday, 17 February as well.
While the swim last year was exceptionally tough, the excellent conditions this year saw the swimmers slashing their times with an average of around 15 – 20 minutes all round.
As the incoming tide started pushing through, a field of 214 ladies took to the water in a flurry of splashing limbs. Following up on her success from last year, Hannah Bodenstein was our first female swimmer home in a spectacular time of 20 minutes and 20 seconds. Hot on her heels was Amber Binney who crossed the finish line a mere 2 seconds later, despite sustaining a gash to her foot in the process. Drew Dobinson followed shortly after with a time of 23 minutes, with Kelly-Page Scott, Brigette Oelofsen and Elia Railton all exiting the water in under 25 minutes.
The perfect conditions held as the group of 237 men began their race. The pushing tide helped the swimmers set a blistering pace and our 3 boys completed the race in good time; all crossing the finish line in under 25 mins. Mack Rubidge powered through the course in an incredible 18 minutes, while Damon Fouche and Schea Johnson finished in 23 and 24 minutes respectively.
It is always wonderful to see our learners representing our school so well in events of this nature and they must be commended for their fine efforts this weekend despite the hefty academic workload that is synonymous with this time of term. Thank you all for your dedication.
IT WAS WONDERFUL TO SEE UNION BEING SO WELL REPRESENTED AT AN EVENT OF THIS STATURE, AND IT WAS ENCOURAGING TO NOTE THE EAGERNESS WITH WHICH ALL THE FIRST-TIMERS COMPETED. WELL DONE TO THEM ALL.
On Saturday our Top 12 Tennis girls travelled to Queenstown to participate in our annual tennis match against GHS. This time round Girls’ High had a very strong team and our girls had to give of their best in most of their matches. Although we beat them by 11 sets to 7, most of the.games were decided by tie-breakers. Well done to Jeanne-Marie Brummer, Lauren Rose-Innes, Tayla Kingwill, Anna Pringle, Leah Marais and Musa Kedamile for winning both their singles and doubles matches.
1st XI vs Daniel Pienaar – T20
On Friday the 1st Xi played against Daniel Pienaar in a T20 match.
Union won the toss and elected to bat. Daniel Pienaar hit their lines and length right from ball one putting our batsmen under pressure and had us at 27/4 after 8 overs. However an excellent 60 run partnership between Bowen Langmead and Caerwyn Spence got us to a modest 101 in our 20 overs.
Batting performances: Bowen Langmead 41; Caerwyn Spence 22; Luke Mc Naughton 13
Daniel Pienaar came in to bat and the Union bowlers struggled, bowling too many lose deliveries and allowed Daniel Pienaar to score freely. This team however showed tremendous character and fight. Despite having their backs against the wall defending such a low total, were able to take the match right down to the second last over.
Bowling performances: Jaden Brotherton 1 for 18 in 4 overs; Luke Mc Naughton 1 for 15 in 3 overs
Union lost the match by 8 wickets.
1st XI vs Daniel Pienaar – Declaration
On Saturday the 1st XI took on Daniel Pienaar again in a Declaration format match.
Union won the toss and sent Daniel Pienaar in to bat.
We were treated to some fantastic new ball bowling from Lung Zantsi, Luke Mc Naughton and Lihle Mxhunyelwa who ripped through their top order and had them 33 for
4 after 12 overs. This was followed by some excellent spin bowling from Jaden Brotherton, Trevor Moos and Brett Amsterdam and Union ended up bowling Daniel Pienaar out for 116.
Bowling performances: Lunga Zantsi 3 for 24 in 9 overs; Jaden Brotherton 3 for 20 in 9 overs; Trevor Moos 2 for 20 in 7,1 overs; Brett Amsterdam 1 for 19 in 7 overs
Union went in to bat and once again were met with excellent accurate bowling and soon found ourselves in trouble. We were then witness to some outstanding batting from Brett Amsterdam who took control of the innings with great maturity and Bowen Langmead who scored at an alarming rate and exciting flare and together put on a 106 run partnership in which each batsman complimented each other perfectly allowing us to reach and extend on our target.
Batting performances: Bowen Langmead 57 off 44 balls; Brett Amsterdam 47; James Pringle 13
Union won the match on 1st innings by 6 wickets.
2nd Team
UHS won the toss, electing to bat and did well to reach a score of 206/8 in this 35 over match. Matthew Hesselink 84 and Jarrod Naude 50* were the main contributors with their 119 run partnership for the 5 wickets in 17 overs. Khwezi Simon made 12 runs.
Daniel Pienaar were well on their way at drinks with a score of 109/3 at 17 overs bowled, but with good accurate bowling by Khwezi Simon 4/10, Gregon Jenneke 3/12 and Matthew Hesselink 2/18, the Daniel Pienaar side were all out for 145 in the 25th over. Gregon Jenneke took an important catch on the boundary to get the wicket of their top scorer. Mihlali Tyanase also took an impressive catch at mid-on.
UHS won by 61 runs.
Congratulations to Jarrod Naude (50*) and Matthew Hesselink (84) in their second team win against Daniel Pienaar
U/15A (T20 Format)
Union High won the toss and elected to bowl first. Daniel Pienaar scored 110 for 6 in 20 overs. Best Bowlers: Hlaki Skepe 2 for 25 in 4 overs; Daniel Nel, Rhuzé Hendrick, Sisipho Arnols and Kwande Mhlabeni each picked up a wicket.
Union High replied with 93 for 9 in 20 overs. Best Batsmen: Sisipho Arnols 19; Hlaki Skepe 17.
Union High lost by 17 runs.
U/15A (Limited overs – 50)
Union High won the toss and elected to bowl first once again. Daniel Pienaar scored 206 all out.
Best Bowlers: Hlaki Skepe 4 for 20 in 8 overs; Kwande Mhlabeni 2 for 60 in 9 overs; Sisipho Arnols 2 for 47 in 7 overs.
Union High replied with 69 all out in 21 overs. Best Batsmen: Sisipho Arnols 21; Hlaki Skepe 18;
Union High lost by 137 runs.
Our boys need to apply themselves better, grind it out and spend time in the middle. The old adage of catches win matches was also part of the 50 over match. We had Daniel Pienaar up against the ropes at 70 for 6, from this point we dropped 4 catches and missed 3 run outs which proved to be our downfall.
JUNIOR
On Friday 1 February Daniel Short took part in the Regional Athletics trails at Collie Koeberg Stadium. Lovely sunny weather ensured for a great display of talent and skill. Daniel competed to the best of his ability and held the school’s name high.
Following his excellent performance, Daniel has been selected to compete in the Sarah Baartman athletics meeting, to be held in Port Elizabeth on the 15th of February.
Results:
100m boys …U11 – 1st
80m boys U11 – 2nd
SENIOR
Twelve of Union High School’s athletes competed at the Karoo Athletics meeting, held on Saturday, 2 February, at the Collie Koeberg Athletics Stadium. The participants recorded the following summary of achievements: 6 Gold medals, 1 Silver Medal and 3 Bronze Medals.
The following learners performed well on the day:
First Places
Marche Green, High Jump, Girls u/17
Erin Mitchell, High Jump, Girls u/16
Dylan Petitt, Javelin, Boys u/15
Rosslyn Sparks, Discus, Girls u/19
Matthew Carelse, 400 m and 800 m, Boys u/17
Second Places
Iviwe Ndame, 800 m, Boys u/19
Third Places
Soyama Mbobi, 100 m, Boys u/19
Iviwe Ndamane, 400 m, Boys u/19
Dylan Petitt, Shotput, Boys u/15
Fourth Place
Singalakha Mapekula, 200 m, Girls u/14
The following learners qualified to represent the Karoo Athletics Team at the CACADU Mega District Meeting to be held at the PE Oval on Saturday, 23 February:
Best of luck to all athletes competing during the next round
13A Cricket vs Gill Primary
On Wednesday our U13A Cricket XI travelled to Somerset-East for our annual T20 match against Gill Primary. Gill won the toss and sent us in to bat. Our opening batsmen laid a solid foundation and our middle order kept piling on the runs with Camran Swartz scoring 56*. We ended the innings on 174/5 after 20 overs. Gill responded positively, but our bowlers were equally up to the task. The game was evenly contested; it took a moment of brilliance f…rom Alutha Wesi who caught Gill’s opening batsmen in the deep to shift the momentum in our favour and Gill managed to score 110 runs. Union won by 64 runs.
U11A vs Gill Primary
Union won the toss and elected to bowl first. We bowled Gill out for 69 runs in the 12th over. Good bowling and fielding led to the loss of wickets after Gill got off to a good start. Owen Paxton was the best bowler taking 3 wickets. Union chased the score down in the 12th over. Contributions from Daniel Short and Yaseen Kazi led to a 3 wicket victory.
On Wednesday 6 February Union 1st XI played a T20 against Hoër Volkskool in the CSA National T20 competition.
Union won the toss and elected to bat. A wonderful opening partnership of 48 between James Pringle and Zusakhe Ngwane got Union off to a perfect start which was followed by another great 53 run partnership between Zusakhe Ngwane and Brett Amsterdam. We lost our way slightly in the middle to back end of the innings but were saved at the end by a 40 run partnership between Brett Amsterdam and Caerwyn Spence which allowed us to reach a respectable total of 154 for 7.
Batting performances: Zusakhe Ngwane 58; Brett Amsterdam 28; Caerwyn Spence 21; James Pringle 13
Hoër Volkskool came in to bat and Union through Trevor Moos and Luke Mc Naughton hit good lines and length from the first over and struck early. Union continued to bowl good tight lines and kept the scoring to a minimum coupled with taking regular wickets. In the end Hoër Volkskool managed to score 77 runs for 7 in their 20 overs.
Bowling figures: Trevor Moos 2 for 10 in 4 overs; Lihle Mxhunyelwa 2 for 15 in 4 overs; Brett Amsterdam 1 for 5 in 4 overs; Lunga Zantsi 1 for 16 in 4 overs; Luke Mc Naughton 1 for 26 in 4 overs; Union won the match by 77 runs.